But being away from them wouldn’t change his feelings. It would make it more special when hedidsee them or get to do those things. Because staying here to live out his goals didn’t feel like it would fulfill him anymore. Without Presley, it didn’t feel like enough. It felt like a vital piece was missing. If he wanted to be the best version of himself,he needed to do everything he could to make himself feel whole again. Presley might not take him back, but he couldn’t move forward until he tried. Until he gave it his all. She deserved that and more. It was time he proved it.
Thirty-Five
The trip home was a lot like the trip to Get Lost: Presley got through it by putting one foot in front of the other, keeping her head up, and blocking her own thoughts. By the time she got into her apartment, she was ready to fall down, maybe right there on the entryway carpet. Rylee had gotten her inside and said she’d be back, but Presley assumed she meant in the next couple of days.
Presley texted Jilly to say she was home safe and saw several emails from Ms. Twain and some texts from Emmett. But because she could only do so much, she turned her phone off the minute she texted Jilly.
It was time to readjust, compartmentalize. She had to be at work at sevenA.M.She had a management conference—not just the promise of one—to attend the day after. If she were scanning the skies for silver linings, one was that her absence had made Ms. Twain more aware of Presley’s value.
She showered, curled up on the couch, and stared at her phone like it was an enemy. She set out her clothes for the next day, tried to eat some dry, stale cereal, made a grocery list.
When the buzzer for her apartment went off, she figured Rylee was checking on her even though she’d promised her friend she was fine and just needed to sleep. Glancing at the retro-style clock sitting on her bookshelves, Presley frowned.
It was late even for Rylee, and especially for her, since she had to be at work in only six hours.
She pressed the speaker button near the door. “Hello.”
“Pres. It’s Emmett. Let me up.”
Presley’s head fell forward, hitting the wall just above the speaker. She pressed the button again. “Why?”
“It’s cold out here. We need to talk.”
They didn’t need to talk, but Presley wasn’t the kind of girl who left an ex standing out in the cold at oneA.M.any more than Emmett was the kind of ex who would go quietly.
She buzzed him in and waited by the door while moments in their relationship slipped through her mind like an Instagram reel. He knocked. She opened the door, stood in the doorway.
His hair was gelled into submission, not one strand out of place. It was practically the middle of the night and he looked like something he definitely wasn’t: perfect. Nothing about him appealed to her as she looked at him. It was as if the false front had fallen away and all she saw were the reasons he wasn’t good enough for her rather than the other way around.
She could thank *bleep* for that. That’s right. She was bleeping out his name in her head.
“What do you want?” All the feelings she’d been so sure about were gone. Like she’d imagined them. She realized,now,that real love didn’t disappear that way. It sank its roots into your soul, changed you. Whether you wanted it to or not. Emmett had changed her. More importantly, he’d never change.
Emmett’s expression softened, the way it used to when he was willing to give a little.Sure, babe, we can have pizza if you really want it. I had my heart set on Thai, but let’s go with what you want.
“You.”
Presley’s brows would have hit her bangs if she had any. “Are you drunk?”
“Can I come in?” Had she ever thought that tone was seductive?
“No.”
His mouth flatlined. “Be reasonable.”
“Be gone.”
“Presley. Come on. We had a fight. We’ve cooled off. Let’s talk.”
She realized, even as her buzzer sounded again—who the hell was here now?—that he fully expected her to give in. Because she would have. With him. Her parents. Her boss. Her friends. Shaking her head, she pressed the intercom button beside her door, still blocking his entrance.
“Hello?”
“Tell me that isn’t dipshit’s car in front of your building,” Rylee’s voice said.
Emmett scowled.
“I’d never lie to you,” Presley said, buzzing her friend up.
